Cheap Cabinet into Nice Bench

Happy Friday, it’s Mindi from MyLove2Create again! I am excited because it is the start of our Spring Break! Even though we are not really going anywhere, we are going to hang with cousins and I am hopefully going to paint some rooms in my house!!! It is long over due let me tell ya!

Anyway, I am happy to be back to share a great project with you, how to turn a Cheap Cabinet into Nice Bench!

I know you have all see those cheap cabinets or other furniture that are made of particle board with the laminate covering…well if you stalk the free section on craig’s list they are EVERYWHERE. This type of furniture can be very useful, but let’s face it, they are not much to look at!

With a little TLC and some inexpensive wood we can fix that!

Last week I went to pick up some free wood (that I found in the free section of craig’s list) and was surprised to find they had a few other things for free too. Like the above cheap laminate cabinet, and a beat up folding table. I grabbed the wood and threw the other two items in as well…you never know right…

I hadn’t planned on using the cabinet anytime soon but a few days later while thinking of a spot in my living room that needed a bench I had an idea, I could turn the cabinet into a storage bench! (Oh, and that folding table? It is my new work surface, you can see the top is pretty scratched up, but I don’t care!)

I quickly set to work, using some of the scrap wood I had gotten and pieces from my own huge scrap pile. I used 2×4’s on the bottom and glued and nailed them all around the bottom edges. This serves two purposes, to beef up the base so I can add trim and have somewhere to nail it into, and to have a place to add feet or casters on the bottom.

Once the base was added I flipped the cabinet over and looked for scraps to add to the top. I wanted to use a thinner material so I could add 1×2’s for the trim later and I happened to find some fun scraps…Can you guess where they are from?

Ok, probably not…they are from one of my recent contributor posts here, my Kid’s Old Drawer Media Cabinet. When I repurposed the drawers to make it, I had to trim off the edges of each drawer and these were the left over scraps. They were the perfect thickness, so I glued and nailed them on! You will also see the weird shaped ones in the middle…I was out of the drawer scraps and wanted some middle support for the bench top, and these scraps were also the same thickness. They were left over from the Repurposed Crib Dog Crate that Sunny is still loving. Moral of the story…never throw away anything!! Actually throwing things away is good, but scraps can come in handy. 🙂

This is what it looked like after bulking up the top and the bottom. Next up? Trim!

I grabbed a piece of 1×3 from my stash and cut the ends it at a 45 degree angle to the length I needed to cover the front of my cabinet. Then I cut a smaller piece for each side. I like the look of the angled corners but you could do straight cuts instead like I did in my DIY Tray Stand. I eventually glued and nailed it on, but I did it after I had finished the top trim.

I had several 1×2 furring strip scraps left over from other projects and I used them to do my top trim. I cut first and made sure they fit. Then I added glue and nailed them on. I made sure to put glue on each corner as well. See how nicely the trim covers up the ugly edges and makes it clean and crisp.

Once I got the top and bottom trim attached, it was time to add the vertical trim. I could have just used 1×2’s here, and that was my original plan, but I found these random strips of wood that were a little thinner and so I used them instead. I measured each one to where it needed to go, then marked and cut it. I made sure to use shorter nails so they didn’t poke through on the inside when I nailed them on. On the front edges I doubled up the trim (top right photo). I filled all holes with spackle when I finished.

All that I had left to do was make the top. I had purchased some 1×4 furring strips for something, I can’t remember what, and they were still laying around unused…so I used them! I cut them to fit the top with a very small overlay on the sides and front (like 1/4 inch). Then I marked them for pocket holes and drilled away with my Kreg Jig.

Since it was getting dark and cold I came inside to finish. My good old standby, the kitchen. 🙂 To create the bench top I clamped two boards together and added the pocket hole screws . Then I added the third board, and then the fourth. Super easy!

This is where I had an internal conflict. What stain to use? I almost ALWAYS go for the dark stain, I LOVE it! But, I wanted to try something different, so I busted out my Rustoleum’s Weathered Gray. It is such a pretty stain and reminds me of blue (my favorite color). I used it for the first time on my Old Deck Wood Laundry Crate and have loved it ever since. I gave the top of the bench one coat.

Next morning I took the old cabinet, soon to be new bench, outside to paint. Here it is after one coat. I had a can of white spray paint so I used that, and used half of another.

After I was done painting I grabbed some casters that I had gotten for free at a city clean up, and pre-drilled and screwed them on.

I sealed the bench top with three coats of poly after staining, making sure to sand with 400 grit sand paper between coats 1 and 2, and it was ready to go on the new bench. I applied my favorite Gorilla Wood Glue and then nailed the bench top on. Sorry no picture. I did want to point out that I when I added my scraps to the top I had to avoid these random sticking up screws…I worked around them, and it was just fine. 🙂

All done! It really is such a simple fix. No one would ever know that this used to be a cheap old cabinet! Using furring strips from the Home Depot, it would be less than $20 for what I did.

Look at all that storage! I have plans for those cubbies, and if you know me well you could probably guess what I am going to build to put inside each of them… Regardless, that is a post for another day, and I will be sharing it here in a few weeks, so stay tuned!

I have to be honest, these pictures are just not getting the stain color, it is much prettier in person. 🙂

I made a pretty weak attempt to stage some books in the bench…

But, it gives you an idea of how useful this bench can be! If I had a spot for a mudroom this would be a great candidate for that job.

For now it is going under my window, and it is perfect there! I just need some cute pillows. Sunny kept photo bombing, so I just gave up and let her stay.

I know I have said it before, but I am always amazed at what you can do with free junk!

I hope you look at cheap laminate furniture in a new light. Maybe you have your own that you could revamp…Would you be willing to give it a go?

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About Mindi

Mindi is a wife, mother, runner, dancer, and a lover of all things fun and DIY.

A few years ago she discovered blogs and fell in love with the idea that she could do things she had always dreamed of doing. Like build furniture from pallets, and make cool projects for her home.... Mindi was inspired by other bloggers that empowered her to create.

Mindi decided to give back and possibly reach someone out there that has a desire to create like herself. She believes we all have that desire in some form or another, and we all DO create in our own way, every day. Whether it be crafty or not, even creating happiness in others is a gift that many share.

Mindi loves to learn and use that knowledge to make beautiful and useful things for her home.

ABOUT GAIL WILSON - A teacher at heart, Gail Wilson relishes the chance not to show off her projects, but to help others find their inner handywoman, step-by-step. Her blog, MyRepurposedLife.com, chronicles her scrap-saving adventures and has been featured on countless DIY magazines and websites, including Women’s Day, Design*Sponge and Apartment Therapy. She is a longtime influencer for both Homeright and Gorrilla Glue. With a tribe of more than 450,000 followers, Gail is inspiring a new generation of DIYers to pick up some tools and get to work.

This is fabulous! I cannot wait to score a beat up bookcase to do the same. Since this is laminate over particle board did you sand the sides and cubby areas before your first coat of paint? Did you use a primer and, if so was it water or oil based? Thank you for (10 sharing this post and creative makeover and (2) responding to my questions.

Thanks DD Rose, I am so glad you like it!! I did sand this down before painting, I ended up using an oil based spray paint with primer to paint it and it worked pretty good!! For the best results with laminate, I recommend sanding it down first (100 to 150 grit sand paper) then clean it off with TSP. Next use an oil based primer (zinsser with stain blocker and bond coat) you can brush it on or spray, but spray will get smoother results) Then sand again with a 320 to 400 grit sand paper after the primer is dry, vacuum and wipe it clean with a damp cloth. Then paint and finish as desired! I hope that helps!!

Okay, I’m late to the party but I LOVE this! We just moved into a townhouse that’s VERY small and I am looking for something like this to turn our front “coat” closet into a mud room. I have a question though, did adding all the 2×4’s make it sturdy enough to sit on? I have little boys (under 3) that will be using it to put shoes on…

Hey Jenn! Oh yes, this is very sturdy to sit on with the 2×4 supports. You will have no problem at all, I have had multiple children and teens on it at a time, even several adults. This would be perfect for a mudroom bench! Good luck! 🙂

You have done a marvelous job on this cabinet….can we say turned an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan. I love the idea of casters, this makes it so easy to change things up in other areas of the house with this cabinet/bench. Great Job.

I love your cabinet into bench transformation!! It’s absolutely perfect in every way. Super tutorial. I look forward to your next post…. so curious to see what you will be using for storage in your new bench. You are the queen of FREE! I just don’t look on craigslist enough.

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Hi, there! I’m Gail Wilson, the author and mastermind behind My Repurposed Life. I’m obsessed with finding potential in unexpected places and believe that with a little hard work and imagination, any old thing can be made useful again—myself included! I hope you’ll enjoy the journey and pick up a few tools along the way… literally! Read More

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